


Fishing Buddies

by Anonymous



Category: Final Fantasy XV, NieR: Automata (Video Game)
Genre: First Meetings, Fishing, Gen, Vignette
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-09
Updated: 2020-08-09
Packaged: 2021-03-06 03:21:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 772
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25796587
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/
Summary: Noctis meets a fellow fishing enthusiast.
Comments: 2
Kudos: 37
Collections: Anonymous, FFXV Kinkmeme





	Fishing Buddies

**Author's Note:**

> For this prompt on the [kinkmeme](https://ffxv-kinkmeme.dreamwidth.org/5941.html?thread=11838773#cmt11838773).

Outside of Galdin Quay, it was rare for Noctis to see anyone other than Nayvth at the usual fishing spots. Ever since the fall of Insomnia, casual travel had diminished, with fears that daemons or Niflheim soldiers would waylay travellers. It surprised Noctis, then, to see a white-haired woman illuminated by his flashlight as he approached Neeglyss Pond. She leaned back casually against what looked like a clear plastic folding chair, not stirring from her task at his appearance.  
  
Given how late it was, he figured it was a better idea to leave her to it. He set down his tackle box at the side of the closed supply booth and began attaching his lure and bait. Between the nighttime sounds of chirping cicadas and the howls of voreteeth, he could barely make out the notes of a tune she was humming. It was soft and faintly familiar, but not a song he actively recognized. Maybe he had heard it on the radio before Prompto flicked the station to something more upbeat.  
  
Noctis stepped off the boardwalk, circling around the pond until he found a place that he was confident in. He cast his line and peered back toward the woman, curious if she was having any luck. A look of confusion crossed his face as it registered to him that she seemed to just be... standing there, arms crossed, staring at the pond like a fish might leap out of it if she glared at it hard enough.  
  
Not long after that bizarre sight settled in his mind, a small white rectangle popped out of the water with a splash, startling him. In its claw (hand?) was a decently-sized bass, which it deposited in a bucket at the woman's feet. Noctis reeled his hook back in, no effort lost since he'd only just started, and trudged back over to the boardwalk. "Uh, hey," he said, lamely. "Are you fishing with that... thing?"  
  
"Affirmative. All pod units are equipped with a fishing program." Her voice reverberated strangely, reminding him of an MT. She didn't look like an MT, though. Blindfolds and gothic dresses weren't exactly Niflheim military standard dress.  
  
He let out a thoughtful hum at that, which caused her to turn her head to him in a way his question hadn't. "I guess it's more efficient that way, but it's not exactly fun."  
  
Her lips quirked in the ghost of a frown, though the tone of her response made it clear it was borne of confusion rather than annoyance. "Fun is unnecessary. The point of fishing is acquiring resources."  
  
"Huh." Noctis shook his head lightly in disappointment. "I always thought fishing was more of a hobby these days, considering." Coernix Station was only about a twenty minute drive up the road. He and Iggy had gone by earlier to pick up some staples for the evening's campfire. "I still think you should consider doing it yourself. I've got an extra rod."  
  
His implicit offer was met with silence. The pod flew out of the water again, holding a bluegill. After it dropped the fish into the bucket, the woman didn't send it back in. Noctis' eyes lit up and he headed back to the booth to grab his spare rod. He returned with a counteroffer in mind. "How about a little friendly competition?"  
  
"I accept," she said, holding the pole out in front of her like a sword. Noctis laughed, corrected her posture, and cast his line nearby.  
  
By the time the first rays of light began creeping over the horizon, Noctis had caught 8 fish while his opponent had caught 7. Her first several casts had been complete failures but she was a quick study, only needing to have a technique demonstrated to her once. At one point, she had hooked something that Noctis had been sure was the King Catfish but it had snapped the bait, hook and all, from the rod before she could reel it in close enough for him to be sure.  
  
"Not bad for your first try," Noctis admitted, thinking back to early fishing trips back when his dad still had time to take him personally. He hadn't caught a thing until his third outing.  
  
"I will practice for our next encounter," she proclaimed, with all the seriousness of someone declaring a duel at dawn. He bent down to put his equipment back in their proper spots in his bag and, when he looked back up, she was gone. When Noctis recovered from his abject shock, he ran a hand through his hair with a laugh  
  
The guys were not going to believe this one.


End file.
